Dr. Mehmet Oz has claimed that taking 100 mg of raspberry ketone will help burn fat. Mehmet is being attacked by mainstream medicine with regard to his comments in this regard. First, I must admit that I am with the mainstream scientifically on this one. The research on this product is from animal testing- NOT in humans. Now, being an alternative medicine guy, I am used to unproven therapies and I advise my patients when using supplements if there is no good research to prove that it works or that it is not dangerous. However, this is NOT new in medicine. MANY products (pharmaceuticals, medical devices and procedures) are used- off label- namely, they are being employed by physicians for a medical problem that they THINK could get better EVEN THOUGH the FDA does not approve of its use for that problem because it deems that there is NOT ENOUGH data to support its use for that problem. Get it? MANY products being used by physicians for specific diagnoses in the mainstream are UNPROVEN to be beneficial for that indication. They were approved by the FDA for something else. So, I am not shocked that Oz would make a claim about an unproven substance- doctors (including yours truly) do it every day.

What is at issue is the safety of the product in humans. There are reports of palpitations and reduced effects of a blood thinner which is prescribed by physicians when the raspberry ketone is consumed. The structure of the ketone is synephrine which could indeed have cardiovascular effects! So, my best advice is to STAY AWAY from this product until we have more information and try a novel approach to fat burning- DIET AND EXERCISE !!!!!!! It is STILL the best way to keep off weight.

When I was a boy, my Dad (Russian from Kiev in the Ukraine) would hang out on the weekends in New York and my greatest treat was when we took the to the Lower East Side of Manhattan on Houston Street and went to a place called Yonah Shimmel. It was quite a ethnic place (Russians and Jews of Russian Decent, Eastern Europeans and everything else in between. There were Knishes- very tasty and there was a refrigerator with glass doors with shelves lined with cold Borscht (amongst other Eastern European culinary delights).Borscht is Russian or Polish soup made with beets and beet juice and usually served with sour cream. Since we could afford only one selection, I invariably chose the Borscht, cold, in a glass with a dab of sour cream. (A weakness that carries with my taste buds until today.) It is was, then, in a store busting with immigrants speaking many languages that I developed my respect, better yet- adoration- for beet juice. Lest you click my story out right now, let me tell you about beet juice:

Beets are a source of Vitamins A, C and Iron

Beet (or Beetroot) Juice seems to reduce blood pressure. They contain Betalins which are are natural pigments that account for the red color in beet stems and leaves. After eating beets, 10- 14 % of people will get Beeturia- red or pink urine. In a recent study it was found that found that consuming beetroot juice was significantly linked to reduced blood pressure over the 24-hour period.

It is one of the richest dietary sources of antioxidants and nitrates that improve blood flow throughout the body, including the brain, heart, muscles, and more. In two studies conducted at Exeter University in the United Kingdom on 15 men, it was found cyclists that who drank a half a liter of beetroot juice several hours before setting off were able to ride up to 20 percent longer than those who drank a placebo. The researchers discovered that beetroot juice allows cyclists to exercise using less oxygen than normal.

One of the most common complaints that I encounter in my practice is headaches. There are many types of headaches- tension, migraine (vascular), cluster, mixed tension/migraine, traumatic, drug related, etc. I am going to focus on migraines. There are a number of types of migraines and a number of causes/triggers. Here are some (by no means all) of the kinds of migraine that I typically see in my primary care practice: